Stock Fail in Five Days

Up until last week I had never purchased any shares of individual companies stock. I have retirement savings in mutual funds, a terrific eduction in business, and years of experience working with finances. However, I was always scared off by the risk of investing in any individual stock.

Earlier this year a relative told me about a stock he liked. He is an investor and knowledgeable about the stock market, so this was an interesting tidbit. I remembered it well also because I had never had someone profess anything to me about any individual stock before. Then last week at a work conference I met a friend of a friend that also mentioned this same company. So I learned more about potential of the company's products. Beyond my piqued interest, I took the happenstance of two people in two different settings telling me the stock was good as a sign that I needed to act.

On Sunday night I put in my order to buy a bunch of shares and on Monday morning I became a shareholder. I watched the stock hourly over the first 48 hours, annoyed at the minor dip in stock price over that period. On Thursday the stock dipped a little lower in price, but Friday was the rude awakening. I checked the stock price around 10:30 and my heart skipped a beat. The stock had a quarter to a third of its value since I bought it on Monday morning. One article I read called the stock the biggest loser on the market that day.

Surprisingly, I have not been completely discouraged by this investment experience and Lisa has not castigated me (yet) for losing value. Since we dabbled with the stock rather than investing all of our life's savings into this, the pain is a little easier to bear.